Into The Floodwaters
by undertheaegisof
Summary: When floodwaters threaten the city, firefighter Peeta Mellark is called into the rescue efforts. Even though he saves many lives that day…one woman stands out among the rest. The Hunger Games completely belongs to Suzanne Collins, not me.


It had been raining off and on for days, but over the past hours the rain has increased exponentially. It is after midnight when the fire station gets the call.

Calgary is now in a state of emergency.

The Bow River and Elbow River are overflowing. Evacuation orders have been given for many neighborhoods. We need to move now. We split up into groups and quickly make our way to the indicated areas. We have to rouse to residents from their beds and tell them to get out. They need to grab only what they cannot leave behind and they have to leave now.

We work all night to get people out and to safer grounds. It is incredible. Within hours many evacuees are welcomed into the homes of their fellow Calgary residents.

When morning comes and the rush hour starts we find ourselves in a new kind of trouble. Downtown is closed due to the floodwaters and yet there are still those who don't know the situation. Many are trying to get to work; some are trying to flee the city. For whatever reason there are to many cars on the roads. We have to re-route traffic and rescue those now stranded in their vehicles.

Some tried to drive through the water covered roads and now their cars are stuck. People are climbing to the roofs of their vehicles. We've brought in boats to aid in our rescue. I never thought I'd see the day when I would need to use a motorboat on the streets of downtown Calgary. Finnick, Thresh and I are manning this particular boat as we search the streets for those who are stranded. I have to admit I'm relieved because Finn has been sailing all kinds of boats for his entire life and so I trust him to pilot the boat safely through the floodwaters.

We've rescued many from their cars by the time we come across a small pickup truck with two women trapped on the roof. It seems that their vehicle has been carried off what was once the road and is now dangerously tilted in the ditch. With the raging waters of the Bow River and the precarious angle of their truck it is amazing they haven't overcome by the waters.

Slowly Finnick pulls the boat near their truck and I ready myself to help the first woman off the roof. Thresh is waiting behind me to receive them.

The dark haired woman helps the blonde to her feet and she holds her steady. I reach out as we get closer to the truck and soon the blonde haired girl is within my reach. She's young, no more than eighteen. Her thin arms are drowning in the grip of my large hands. Her small body is easy to lift over into the boat and I quickly set her down and Thresh takes her from me. I turn back to the truck and finally get a look at the darker haired woman. Her grey eyes bore into mine. It amazes me…while the blue eyes of the younger girl showed fear and relief, this girls grey eyes are filled with courage.

I steady my hands as she moves to grab my forearms. She's small, just a little larger than the blonde. She's older too, maybe twenty-four or twenty-five. Her grip on my arms is firm and I quickly pull her into the boat and hold her steady in my arms. I can't help the moment of hesitation I have. I hold her for longer than socially acceptable for strangers but she doesn't seem to mind. I'm completely disarmed by the intense gaze of her silver grey eyes.

A few groans and cracks ripple through the air. The raging waters have finally dislodged their truck and it begins to slide down the river. The waters have picked up in the moments we've been here.

"Watch out!" Thresh's deep voice booms among the thunderous sound of the rushing river.

The sound of crunching metal brings me out of my trance, unfortunately moments to late. In the midst of our rescue we had failed to notice the large chunk of debris floating our way.

_Thud._

The debris makes contact and the boat shudders. Finnick grips the wheel tighter and Thresh quickly grabs the side of the boat. I tighten my grip on the brunette's arms.

"Ah!" A girlish shriek breaks through as the small blonde tumbles over the side of the boat into the raging waters.

"Prim!" The choked scream erupts from the brunette in my arms.

Immediately and without thinking I throw myself into the waters.

"Peeta!" I hear Thresh and Finnick's panicked voices.

The sounds of the water roar in my ear and I can hear the gargled screams of the young girl. The pull of the currents is strong and I am forced to use every ounce of my strength to reach the girl.

I pull her tightly to my side and with my other hand I attempt to swim against the current. Quickly I realize how hopeless that is. The boat seems to be shrinking into the distance and I frantically search around for something to grab onto. A few feet to my right a traffic light stands above and out of the water.

"Hold on to me." I command and the girl tightly wraps her arms around my torso. I shift her to my back and begin to swim towards it. My arms are tiring quickly but I force myself to push past the burning sensation in my muscles.

When the cool metal of the post is finally in my grasp I breathe a heavy sigh of relief. I wrap one arm around the pole and one firmly around the trembling girl. My eyes frantically search for the boat, I find it about a block away. I let go of the girl who still clings to my back and wave that arm frantically. I know Finnick spots me when the boat starts in our direction.

"Hold tight. They're on their way." I feel her nod against my back. She sobs quietly as we wait.

The boat sidles near to us and I swim the remaining meter to the side of the boat. Thresh first pulls the girl off my back and then turns to haul me out of the water. He grabs a blanket and throws it around my shoulders. I shiver violently as I sit in the boat. I look over the where the blonde girl is wrapped in a blanket and the older girl's arms are wrapped tightly around her. I can hear the faint murmurings of the grey-eyed beauty, whispers of comfort and reassurance.

"Peet don't you dare do that to us again." Thresh scolds as Finnick starts the boat and quickly flies through the streets. We reach the edge of the flooding and the two girls are passed safely into the arms of rescue officials.

As they are transported away I can't help the way my eyes linger on the woman with the mesmerizing grey-eyes.

_Two Months Later_

It is months after and the city is rebuilding. I saw so many people rescued that day but I still can't seem to forget about the girl with the grey eyes and brown hair. She was beautiful, even in those few moments I was enraptured. I hadn't stopped thinking about her since that day. I never even learnt her name; there was no way I could find her. But everyday I've thought of her.

I pull myself out of bed and into the shower. I let the hot water relax my muscles and rinse off the dirt and grime from yesterday. After a few minutes I turn off the water and dry myself. I quickly slip into my uniform and make the short drive to work. I pull off 69th street into the fire hall and park.

My coworkers greet me as I wander in and begin my tasks. A few hours later I hear my name being called. I recognize the voice as Thresh's and I look up to see him enter the room.

"You have a visitor." He says quietly in his gruff voice.

"Who?" I ask.

"Didn't catch the name." He smirks. I glance at him curiously. He seems oddly cheery this morning. I think I've heard rumors of a new girlfriend in his life. My word you'd think this fire hall is full of old ladies knitting in a circle with all the gossip that floats around.

He gestures for me to follow and leads me to the front lobby.

I see Finnick standing near a small woman with dark chestnut hair in an intricate braid. He smiles and laughs as they talk. My heart twitches at the possibility…could it be?

Finnick notices my approach and nods his head. She turns and my eyes meet the grey eyes that have haunted my dreams.

"Hi." I breathe out, releasing the breath I had unconsciously been holding. My heart flutters at the small smile she returns.

"Hi." Her voice is like a sweet melody. "I don't know if you remember me…"

"I do." I interrupt quickly and she bites her lip as she smiles.

"I never got a chance to thank you…for saving my sister's life." I furrow my brow and think. The two certainly did not look like sisters. "She is everything to me and I can't thank you enough. I'd like to repay you."

"No that's not necessary. It's my job, I was more than happy to do it. Really, you don't owe me anything."

A devious smirk crosses her face. "That's a shame. I was thinking I could take you on a date; dinner and movie seemed like a decent payment. However since you're not interested I guess I'll have to take…Finnick, was it?" She looks over to Finnick who pretends to look insulted at the fact she isn't affected by his charm. "I'll have to take Finnick up on his offer."

"I…uh…no I'd be happy…umm I'd be happy to." I stammer like a thirteen-year-old boy in the presence of a pretty girl. The only thing that could have made that worse was if my voice cracked. Could I be anymore pathetic?

"Great. How does Friday night work for you?" She chuckles.

"Perfect…yeah that sounds great." She hands me a piece of paper and begins to leave.

"Pick me up at six." She says over her shoulder and then saunters out of the building. My jaw drops to the floor and I'm pretty sure I'm drooling as I watch her walk away.

I turn the paper over.

_Katniss Everdeen_

_2402-2434 33 ST SW_

_780-912-4545_

Katniss Everdeen…what a beautiful name.

Friday night can't come fast enough.

_One Year Later_

It's been a year since our first date. We had dinner at a small Vietnamese place on Springborough Boulevard. We talked and laughed till closing. Then we walked together till late into the night. When I dropped her off at home I gave her a quick kiss to the cheek. However my Katniss has always been one to go for what she wants. She had grabbed my collar tightly and pulled me for a deep kiss. I was surprised at first and my lips didn't immediately catch up with my brain. But it was an amazing kiss.

Now one year later we are celebrating our anniversary at that same restaurant, however tonight I will be the one to surprise her. Tonight I am going to ask her to marry me.

* * *

**A/N: This story goes out to all those affected by the floods in Southern Alberta. ****Calgary is like a second home to me.** My thoughts and prayers are with you all. 


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